Kimchi (배추김치)

Fermented napa cabbage — the one dish on every Korean table.

Korean name: 배추김치
Spice level: Medium
Flavor: spicy · sour · fermented
Typically contains: fermented seafood seasoning
Vegetarian / vegan: Sometimes — vegetable-forward, but anchovy broth, fish sauce or meat garnish is common. Ask first
Good to know: Beginner-friendly ●●●○○ Solo dining ●●●●● Kid-friendly ●●○○○
Also written as: kimchee, gimchi, baechu kimchi, napa cabbage kimchi

Spice and flavor are editorial assessments of the standard version — individual restaurants and recipes vary. Ingredient notes are typical, not guaranteed: always check with the restaurant for allergies or dietary needs. Eating and cooking notes describe common practice in Korea; our first-hand deep-dives live in the Eat Like a Local guides.

What is Kimchi?

Kimchi (김치) — specifically baechu-kimchi, fermented napa cabbage — is the food most identified with Korea, served free with virtually every meal. Cabbage is salted, coated with a paste of gochugaru chili, garlic, ginger, and fish sauce, then fermented from days to months. It is a side dish, an ingredient, and for Koreans a daily staple: government surveys consistently show it on the table at most meals.

How to eat it

Treat it as a side, not a salad. Take a piece or two at a time with your chopsticks between bites of rice and mains — it is a pacing food.
Cut large leaves with scissors if provided. At restaurants, whole-leaf kimchi is cut at the table; at home it is pre-cut.
Match the age to the dish. Fresh kimchi (geotjeori-style) eats like a crisp salad with grilled meat; sour, aged kimchi suits stews and fried rice.
Refills are free. In Korean restaurants, asking for more kimchi is normal and expected.

Cooking it at home

Quarter a napa cabbage and brine in coarse salt 4–6 hours, turning, until leaves bend without snapping; rinse three times.
Make the paste: gochugaru, minced garlic and ginger, fish sauce (or salted shrimp), a rice-flour porridge, and sliced radish and scallion.
Coat every leaf, pack into a container, press out air, and leave at room temperature 1–2 days until it smells lightly sour.
Refrigerate; it keeps improving for weeks and remains usable (for cooking) for months.

Good to know

Almost always contains fish sauce and/or salted shrimp — not vegetarian by default; vegan kimchi exists but must be asked for.
It is high in sodium; treat it as a condiment-sized side if you watch salt intake.
Very sour kimchi is not spoiled — it is meant for stews and pancakes at that stage.

Kimjang, the communal early-winter kimchi-making, is inscribed on UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage list.

Most Korean homes have a dedicated kimchi refrigerator — that is how central it is.

Seen on Screen

This food appears in popular Korean dramas and movies — every connection verified and sourced.

Reply 1988 (응답하라 1988, 2015) — The episode-one dinner exchange — kimchi and side dishes ferried between houses — defines the show's whole world of shared tables.

✓ Verified — editorial research · Explore the scene →

Nutrition

Calories	38 kcal
Carbohydrate	6.49 g
Protein	1.98 g
Fat	0.43 g
Sodium	551 mg

Per serving (~100g): ≈38 kcal · sodium ≈551 mg (28% of the WHO daily guideline, 2,000 mg)

Per 100g · total serving 100g · Official data: National Integrated Food Nutritional Information Standard Data (Korea MFDS) (DB item: 배추김치, synced 2026-07-17). Values vary by recipe and portion.